Guidelines proposed to help curb false advertising on social media

SINGAPORE — Consumers who are tempted to try out new products or services because of glowing testimonies by well-known personalities on social media may soon be better able to make a call when these so-called social-media influencers are made to declare if their reviews are sponsored content.

The Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (ASAS) wants individuals who are hired to tout products and services to make it clear when they are publishing sponsored messages, under proposed new guidelines for digital and social media advertising.

Details of the guidelines were put up for public feedback yesterday, and will be up until Jan 8 next year. ASAS said the guidelines are for addressing issues in advertising that have been thrown up by the emergence of new technologies, but which are currently not covered by the Singapore Code of Advertising Practice (SCAP). Once these guidelines are finalised, it will be incorporated into the SCAP.

Earlier this year, Singtel was rapped for a smear campaign against its competitors run by Gushcloud, a social media agency it had engaged. The campaign involved social-media influencers making fake complaints about M1’s and StarHub’s services on social media, in return for incentives such as cash and discounts on mobile phones.

The draft guidelines for digital and social-media advertising that ASAS has come up with requires personalities hired for marketing work to differentiate sponsored messages from personal opinions and editorial content in their posts on social media, such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. They must also disclose any commercial relationships in a prominent manner.

For example, if a user is endorsing a specific company, product or service, these advertisements should not look like “impartial or casual” tweets on their Twitter account.

Even if a blogger is writing his genuine thoughts about a product or service provided by a company he has a commercial relationship with, he should declare the relationship in the post, ASAS proposes. Also, firms should not mask advertisements by publishing them in a blog format that makes content seem like they come from an impartial and credible source, the authority added.

Those who are marketing products and services also have to be transparent about fees and the purchase process, and ensure that digital marketing communications addressed to children are suitable for them.

For instance, if there are fees for using a product or service that is marketed by a blogger, he or she has to make this clear. If it involves products or services that have age restrictions — such as alcoholic beverages, gambling and tobacco products — the website should take measures to restrict minors’ access.

Welcoming the proposed guidelines, 22-year-old retail assistant Ms Q Ong said: “It will help because I know that it’s an advertisement, so I won’t misunderstand (if) the blogger (is) trying to introduce (a product) that she finds to be good.”

Agreeing, Ms Chan H S, a 22-year-old research assistant said: “This will ensure that there’s no deceit. We put so much trust in them, (we want to know if the product or service) they are promoting is (an) advertisement or their own feelings.”

But Ms Lynette Heng, 24, thinks the new guidelines will not make much difference as these bloggers and social-media influencers have “some sort of influence” on the masses.

Lifestyle and food blogger Peggy Chang said her practice is to make it clear when her blog post is a sponsored or advertorial content because this is “more ethical”. “If I put myself in the shoes of a consumer, I will want to know whether the blog posts I am reading are paid or not, and since I am on the other end of the spectrum, I feel that it is only fair to do so,” said the 30-year-old.